Full Name: Darren Clarke
Date of Birth: 14 th August, 1963
Country: Northern Ireland
Profile: Darren Clarke became a professional golfer in 1990. He won the first title of his career in 1992 when he won the Ulster Professional Championship. In 1993, he won his first title on the European Tour, the Alfred Dunhill Open.
After this victory his form dipped and he didn't win a single tournament on this tour until 1996. The Compass Group English Open has been his favorite hunting ground, as he has won this meet three times. However, his most memorable win came in the WGC-NEC Invitational in 2003. Here he pipped Tiger Woods to the title in the final. Till date, Clarke has won 10 tournaments on the European Tour.
Tragedy befell him in August, 2006 when his wife Heather Clarke, died of cancer. Braving this personal loss, he played in the Ryder Cup and won all three of his matches. He had also been amongst the top 10 golfers in the world. According to the latest Official World Golf Rankings, he is the 34 th ranked player in the world.
Tournaments won
Darren Clarke has won many tournaments over the years but the most coveted among them is the WGC-NEC Invitational that he won in 2003. He has also won tournaments at the Japan Golf Tour and the Challenge Tour. Here is a list of some of the tournaments that he has won Tour so far.
- 2005: Mitsui Sumitomo VISA Taiheiyo Masters
- 2004: Mitsui Sumitomo VISA Taiheiyo Masters
- 2003: WGC-NEC Invitational; Benmore Developments Northern Ireland Masters
- 2002: Compass Group English Open
- 2001: Smurfit European Open; Dimension Data Pro-Am, Chunichi Crowns
- 2000: WGC-Anderson Counseling World Matchplay Championship; Compass Group English Open
- 1999: Compass Group English Open
- 1998: Benson & Hedges International Open; Volvo Open; Volvo Masters
- 1996: Linde German Masters
- 1994: Irish National PGA Championship
- 1993: Alfred Dunhill Open
- 1992: Ulster Professional Championship
